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Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five: Greatest Messages (Sugarhill); Grandmaster Melle Mel: 'Jesse' (Sugarhill)

J.D. Considine, Record, June 1984

RAP RECORDS had messages before 'The Message' exploded across the airwaves in 1982, but it remains extremely tempting to argue that it was Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five who first elevated rap from mere boasting to the beat. So much so, in fact, that many of the fans who first picked up on the group with 'The Message' will be surprised to find that the first side of this greatest hits-styled package is devoted to standard party-time jive. But then, this retrospective view of Flash and the Five's work is full of surprises.

Total word count of piece: 377

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